Parades! Oshun and Cleopatra

The official Carnival parades kicked off with the Krewes of Oshun and Cleopatra on Friday night.  Oshun, named for the African goddess of fountains, love, wealth and religion, features peacock symbology and finely feathered royalty including Christopher Brown as King Shango, Queen Laquina Ladmirault Brown, Grand Marshall WDSU’s Damon Singleton and Ms. Black Lousiana, Chelsea Smith. Established in 1996, this year’s theme was “Night Out in the Big City.” My favorite float had to be the Saints Superfans float. Superfan Larry Jehle Jr. AKA “Saints Fett” passed last week after battling leukemia and, though he only ever got to attend one game inside the Dome, even Drew Brees mourns his loss.

Krewe of Orpheus 2012

Krewe of Orpheus, which celebrates music, is another of the city’s favorite parades owing to its many bands and celebrity guests. Rolling on Lundi Gras night (Monday before Fat Tuesday), it would be my last parade of the season. As with last year, floats overflowed with celebs including Bret Michaels, Harry Connick Jr., Mariska Hargitay, Cyndi Lauper, Hilary Swank and Modern Family‘s Sarah Hyland.

Krewe of Oshun kicks off Mardi Gras

Krewe of Oshun rolled St. Charles as the first official Uptown parade of the season. No time to write so if you want more information about the parade, check out last year’s post. This year’s theme was “Child’s Play” with 19 floats based on nursery rhymes. Deborah Singleton Rogers was this year’s Queen Oshun and Ronald Joseph Lewis Jr. served as King Shango. Grand Marshal was former City Councilman and Treme guest star (playing himself), Oliver Thomas.

Krewe of Orpheus

The Krewe of Orpheus is the last parade to roll before Fat Tuesday. Like Endymion and Bacchus, Orpheus is a super-krewe with giant floats, mountains of throws and celebrity guests. Founded in 1993 by Harry Connick Jr. and Sr. and theatrical director, Sonny Borey, the krewe accepts members of any race or gender. Named for the son of Apollo whose music enchanted everything in nature, the 27 Blaine Kern designed floats portrayed the theme of, “Visions of Other Worlds.” Celebrity guests included Jennifer Coolidge and Jonathan Silverman as well as a chunk of HBO’s Treme cast including Steve Zahn, NOLA native Wendell Pierce, Khandi Alexander, John Goodman, David Morse, Kim Dickens and many more.

Krewe of Thoth

The Krewe of Thoth, founded in 1947, has a unique Uptown route designed to pass hospitals and other institutions people have trouble leaving for a parade. Originally, the 50 riders and 5 floats rolled past 14 care facilities. Today, their 1,200-plus riders and 40 floats still roll a unique route, passing New Orleans Adolescent Hospital and Children’s Hospital among other facilities. 

Knights of Chaos

The Knights of Chaos is one of the city’s newer krewes. Founded in 2000, their satirical floats are fashioned by fantastic float makers – Royal Artists. Their name comes from the Greek word meaning, “A great confusion out of which a supreme being created all life.” This year’s theme was, “Chaos Eats Out, No Reservations” and though much of the humor is bawdy, the krewe is very family-centered.